The present invention is directed to a swab for cleaning. More particularly, the present invention pertains to a swab having a different cleaning surfaces on a single cleaning head.
Swabs are used in all manners of cleaning. For example, everyone will recognize common cotton tipped swabs that are used for personal hygiene and care. Because of the compact and effective nature of these swabs, they have been adopted for use in numerous areas of technology and manufacture. One such area is the manufacture of advanced optical components for use in aerospace and navigation systems.
Fiber optic components, such as fiber optic connectors, are also widely used in telecommunications. During manufacture and use of optical components it is not unusual for pieces of manufacturing debris, such as dust and fibers or other particulate debris to be left on surface of the components. It is also not unusual for light oils, such as fingerprint and other natural skin oils to be found on many of these parts.
Moreover, when out “in the field”, the outer casings or shells of the connectors can become dirty and soiled from exposure to the environs. As such, during maintenance and/or repair, the connectors themselves can become soiled with dirt, oils and other debris. It will be appreciated that the debris and oils can significantly degrade, distort or prevent the proper and precise transmission of images.
There are many types of connectors that are used in fiber optic cable installations. The type of connector can vary depending upon the type of use (e.g., harsh versus mild environments), the number of strands (for example, 6, 12, or 18 strands) in the cable, and the physical arrangement of the strands within the cable. The fiber (optical) strands are aligned with metal pins to assure continuity of the signal between the connections. Since the connections are minute, most commonly there are strands that are “shrouded” by the alignment pins making cleaning a difficult operation. Cleaning the connections is paramount for existing and anticipated high speed fiber optic transmissions. One particular type of connector (an MT-type ribbon connector, which has alignment pins) can be very difficult to properly clean, especially the fibers that are along side of the alignment pins.
Numerous types of cleaning implements have been used, with some degrees of success, to clean these particularly sensitive components and areas. Swabs are often used, and with great success, to clean connectors and other parts of the fiber optic cable systems. However, because of the different surfaces, pin configurations and the like, it has been found that for proper cleaning of these components, a one-size-fits-all cleaning implement is not the best solution. Rather, in certain instances, a specific, preferred swab material and configuration may be best suited for the cleaning application. And, it may not always be possible to have on hand all of the various sizes and configurations needed for a given use.
Accordingly, there is a need for a swab that is usable with multiple types and configurations of fiber optic connectors. Desirably, such a swab can be used to efficiently and effectively clean both side and end faces of connectors, as well as different types of connectors. Most desirably, such a swab eliminates the need for maintaining an inventory of different types of swabs needed for in-field fiber optic cable maintenance and repair.